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Up For Parole

Update: PAROLE
DENIED. The parole of inmate Thomas Eugene
Kelley has been reversed and denied. Kelley will not have another
hearing until December 2019. Thank you to everyone who submitted
a petition to block
this parole.

Thomas Eugene Kelley

Inmate
Name:

Thomas
Eugene Kelley

Inmate Number:

A146483

Victim(s):

Wilma
Walls

Offenses:

Rape,
Voluntary Manslaughter

Minimum/ Maximum Sentence:

12
- 50 Years

Next Parole
Hearing:

December
2019

Case Facts:

On Saturday March 13,
1976 Wilma Walls, a 47-year-old wife and mother of seven
children, called a cab to take her to the grocery store. At
approximately
8:30 PM Safety Cab Company taxi cab driver Thomas Eugene Kelley
picked up Mrs. Walls. On the way to the store Kelley began
propositioning Mrs. Walls in an effort to get her to have
sex with him. Mrs. Walls told Kelley to "stop it".
She became scared
and
started
shaking.
Mrs. Walls
told Kelley to "Stop the Car" several times. Seeing
Mrs. Walls shaking Kelley pulled the cab over to the side of
a field.
Mrs. Walls immediately opened the cab door and started running
for her life. Kelley then got out of the cab and chased her
down and tackled her. According to Kelley while he was wrestling
around on the ground with Mrs. Walls he became aroused. Kelley
stated, "I guess I kind of forced her to get naked with
me."
Kelley then raped Mrs. Walls. After raping her Kelley
then got up and started to walk away. When Mrs. Walls started
screaming Kelley ran back and started wrestling with Mrs.
Walls again. Kelley said he became aroused again and raped
Mrs. Walls a second time. Mrs. Walls kept screaming while Kelley
was raping
her. Kelley took off his belt, wrapped it around Mrs. Walls
throat, and told Mrs. Walls to shut up.
Kelley
stated
he
pulled the belt a little too tight because the next thing
he knew
was
she was
dead. Kelley then fled the scene.

When Mrs. Walls did not
return home her family frantically began searching for her.
On March 19, 1976 their search came to an end when a farmer
plowing a field found Mrs. Walls body in a drainage ditch.
When police found Mrs. Walls body she was badly beaten.
He blouse was ripped open with several buttons missing. The
blouse
was used to
bound Mrs. Walls arms behind her. Her pants were removed and
one pant leg was tied tightly around her throat. Mrs. Walls'
underwear was tied around her ankles. Police also found a
man's belt next to Mrs. Walls. The belt had the name "Thomas"
written in blue ink on the inside of it.

Police located Kelley
at his mother's house and arrested him on March 25, 1976.
Kelley then spent the next several hours leading police on
a wild
goose chase. He took them to houses and bars where he claimed
to have gone to after he
picked
up Mrs. Walls. At every location no one could
identify him. While driving back to Columbus Kelley finally
admitted that he could have killed the lady in question,
but did not remember.
He also stated he did things in the past which he did
not remember. Kelley stated Mrs. Walls made him mad and he
also mentioned his Marine Sergeant made him mad when he was
in
Vietnam. Kelley told police
he was going to kill the Marine Sergeant however several
other Marines restrained him and took his gun away before
he could kill the Marine Sergeant. In the same breath Kelley
said he feels like
killing
his
mother-in
law sometimes.

After Kelley's arrest
it was learned that Kelley was an extremely violent ex-con.
Kelley
had been committing crimes since he was 15. He had a two-page
rap sheet dating back to 1967. He was on probation
for auto theft when he killed Wilma Walls. He also had a warrant
for his arrest due to an assault on his estranged wife. Kelley's
wife stated he had a very bad temper and would become extremely
violent. She said he had assaulted both her and their 20-month-old
daughter on multiple occasions.
She
stated
he
would forget or deny his
actions
the following day. Kelley had also served time in the Lima
State Mental Hospital where he was considered to be a "Psychopathic
Offender". In addition, Kelley openly confessed he killed
WilmaWalls to a fellow inmate while sitting
in jail.

Based on the overwhelming
evidence Kelley took a plea deal rather than going to trial
and facing the death penalty. He pled guilty to rape and voluntary
manslaughter and was sentenced from 12-50 years in prison.

Kelley's prison records
indicate that he has not done much to rehabilitate himself.
As of 2007 (The last records available from the Ohio Department
of Corrections)
Kelley had taken a minimal number of classes. He had not taken
a victims awareness class and he had not taken the
comprehensive sex offender program. In 2004 the parole records
state, "Pattern
of resistance to discussion makes inmate an unacceptable risk
to the community." In 2007 the records state, "Inmate
has not participated in and/ or completed relevant institutional
programming
to address his criminal history, this makes him a more serious
risk to the community. He does not have a reasonable release
plan and limited community support." Considering Kelley
had done nothing in 31 years to rehabilitate himself we
find it difficult to believe that he has a made some amazing
transformation in the last five years.

Thomas Kelley brutally
murdered a wife and mother of seven children. He is a diagnosed
psychopath who
has never taken responsibility for his actions. In addition,
Kelley has done almost nothing in over three decades to address
his criminal behavior. Releasing Thomas Kelley will pose an
incredible risk to the community and would deny justice for
Wilma Walls. Based on the facts above, and that Thomas Kelley
brutally raped and killed a complete stranger, we believe Thomas
Kelley should be required to serve his maximum sentence of
50 years in prison.

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